ESG Investor’s weekly round-up of news on technology and tools in the sustainable investing sector.
Market data provider IHS Markit is launching a Sovereign ESG Dataset, covering 41 indicators across 211 countries and territories. The dataset outputs include forward guidance on a one-year horizon for key sovereign ESG indicators, and are numerical for efficient portfolio integration. The metrics will allow users to identify emerging risk and opportunity, and to capture a strategic view of current and future exposure to ESG-related policies. “More financial institutions are looking to build their own bespoke ESG values across a wider range of detailed country level metrics. Our data sets deliver a detailed ten-year time series combined with a one-year forecast across a large number of these, enabling new perspectives being applied to ESG modelling,” said Kevin Bourne, co-head, sustainable finance at IHS Markit, which is subject to a US$44 billion takeover bid by S&P Global.
Data science firm RepRisk has become an ESG provider on AWS Data Exchange, providing subscribers with streamlined access to relevant, daily-updated information on ESG and business conduct risks regarding financial decision making. RepRisk currently offers quantitative risk analytics and metrics for more than 160,000 public and private companies, across global sectors and markets. The firm combines machine learning and human intelligence to identify and assess ESG risks. AWS Data Exchange is a service that simplifies access and use of third-party data in the cloud via Amazon Web Services.
The Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) has signed an agreement with German index engineering company Solactive to establish a new green bond impact index. The Solactive LGX Green Bond Impact Index, composed of a selection of green bonds listed on LuxSE and displayed on the Luxembourg Green Exchange, will exclusively fund projects with a positive environmental or climate impact. All green bonds in the index will be required to be compliant with recognised market standards. “The Green Bond Impact Index furthermore enhances the visibility of the green bond issuers displayed on LGX, who commit to maximum transparency. It is a pleasure for us to collaborate with a leading index provider like Solactive on this unique project,” said Julie Becker, deputy CEO of LuxSE and founder of LGX. As well as providing exposure to the green bond market, the index has been constructed for liquidity to be as relevant as possible for asset managers and investors.
Financial intelligence company Qontigo has licensed three indices to Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities. All three have a Japan focus and underlie respective change-traded notes listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. “These three indices reflect attractive themes and include a strong ESG tilt, addressing key current demands from investors in Japan and beyond,” said Rick Chau, head of Asia/Pacific at Qontigo. The iSTOXX MUTB Japan Empowering Women 30 Index tracks the performance of 30 companies that support and encourage working women. The iSTOXX MUTB Japan ESG 30 Index selects 30 securities with the highest ESG Risk Rating scores from within the iSTOXX MUTB Japan Quality 150 Index, which also provides the Empowering Women 30 Index with its company selection. The iSTOXX MUTB Japan Market Share Leaders Index tracks the performance of over 30 Japanese securities which have prominent positions in their areas of operation. The stocks are selected from the STOXX Japan 600 Index, excluding REITs.
